A New Discovered Power
by Chibi Reli
Summary: A new evil has entered this world, but can the Ronin Warriors defeat this evil, or will they need some help from Mia and her new power?
1. chapter 1

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part One  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia! Hurry up! We're going to miss everything!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'm coming, Yuli. Are the guys ready?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'll go find out." Yuli ran into the living room. Kento and Ryo were arm-wrestling, Rowen was reading, and Sage and Cye were watching TV. "Why aren't you guys dressed yet?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What do you mean, and why are you dressed like that?" Ryo asked as he slammed Kento's hand on the table. Kento sighed. Yuli was dressed in a green kimono.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It's the day of the warrior."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What's that?" Sage asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It's a holiday that we celebrate every year." Mia came out in a lavender colored kimono. "There's a legend that a long time age, an evil force entered our world and wanted to destroy it. All the warriors in the land tried to defeat this evil, but all were unsuccessful.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "There was one man, though, who prayed to the gods for help. He wanted the gods to save his family and friends and that he would do anything to save them. The gods were so touched by this man that they gave him the power he needed to destroy the evil force. After defeating the evil, he disappeared. They say that he had become immortal and watches over Toyama, making sure no evil enters. On this day, we celebrate his victory by wearing the traditional clothes and party. Now, I put your clothes on your beds, so you just have to put them on and we'll be off."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Can we eat something first?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Wait 'til we get there, Kento. They have huge buffets and it's all free," Yuli said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "All right! What are we waiting for?" Kento ran to his room, while everyone started to laugh.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "So. It looks like the time has come to destroy this world," said a dark figure sitting in a throne. "No one will stop me."  
  
Â  Â Â  Â Mia was in her room looking for her keys. She looked on her dresser to find her keys and saw a strange necklace with a gem on it. The gem was blue, about one inch and sphere shaped. "What's this? I don't remember ever seeing this before." She picked it up and looked at it.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Honk! "Come on, Mia! We're going to miss all the food!" Kento screamed. The guys were outside. Their kimonos were in their colors. Mia put the necklace around her neck, under her kimono, and left.  
  
Â  Â  Â  When they arrived in town, they looked for a parking space, but everything seemed to be full. "There's a parking space!" Cye screamed as he pointed to an empty space. Mia pulled in and they all got out.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "All right! Time to eat! Come on, Cye." Kento grabbed Cye and dragged him away.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, I guess it's time to go party. Ready, Yuli?" Ryo asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let's go!" Yuli, Rowen, Sage, and Ryo started to walk off. Ryo looked behind and saw Mia sitting on the trunk of the jeep, looking at the sky. He walked over to her.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey Mia, what's wrong? Didn't you want to come here?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Huh? Oh, of course I wanted to come. It's just that I have this really strange, really weird feeling, like something is out there."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What do you mean?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I mean, do you really think we destroyed the Dynasty and Talpa? It seems like something is still there."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Of course we destroyed Talpa. You saw it with your own eyes."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I just think that here's something still there, after us."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Don't worry about it Mia. I'll make sure nothing happens to you." Ryo grabbed her arm and pulled her off the trunk. "Now, come on. We came here to have a good time, so let's have one." Mia followed Ryo and they went to look for the others.  
  
Â  Â  Â  After spending a few hours, they all met around the jeep. "Well, I had a great time."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "You just ate the whole time, Kento," Cye said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, I think we better be getting back now," Rowen said. All of a sudden, the sky turned pitch black. There was thunder and lightning too.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That's strange. It got dark awfully fast, and I didn't hear anything about a storm," Sage said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Prepare for your end, puny mortals!" Out of the sky, came down a shadow figure. "Get ready to fight!" The figure shot a beam at the nearest building and destroyed it. Everyone ran and screamed, trying to get to their cars.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I don't know about you, but I think it's time to show this guy a thing or two," Kento said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Right! Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia, Yuli, get out of here," Cye said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "All right, let's go, Yuli." Mia grabbed Yuli's hand and runs toward the jeep.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "All right then. Who are you, anyway?" Rowen asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I am here to destroy this world and give it to Lord Persha for him to rule."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, too bad, cause you won't be leaving here alive," Kento said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Big words to say for such a weakling."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Time to rock and roll. Iron Rock Crusher!" The figure dodged Kento's attack with no problem.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That was too easy, Hardrock. I thought you would be more of a challenge."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well then, try this on for size." Rowen shot a dozen arrows at the figure while Cye and Sage came from behind. He missed the arrows and the attack from behind. He found each Ronin Warrior and struck them down.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "There's no way we're going to let you win, you jerk. Flare Up Now!" The attack looked like it was going to hit him, but he moved out in time.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Was that your best shot, Ronin Warriors? Why don't I show you what real power is? Shadow Phantoms Attack!" His attack hit the Ronins and sent them flying. They were scattered all over the ground. "How was that, Ronin wimps?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Oh no, Ryo!" Yuli came out of hiding and ran toward Ryo.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Yuli, come back here!" Mia screamed.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Don't interfere with me, boy. Shadow Phantoms Attack!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  Yuli stopped and froze in place. He started to scream, but before the attack hit him, Mia pushed him out of the way and got hit by some of the attack. She was thrown backwards and tumbled.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Oh no, Mia." Yuli ran over to Mia. "Mia, are you okay? I'm sorry."  
  
Â  Â  Â  It's okay Yuli. I'm fine." She sat herself up and Ryo came over to check on her. The others continued to fight the shadow figure, but he creamed each of them.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Now, since they're out of the way, it's time to destroy the most powerful one, you, Wildfire. Shadow Phantoms Attack!" His attack went straight for Ryo, Mia, and Yuli.  
  
Â  Â  Â  They all stared, until Mia started to scream. From under Mia's kimono, a light started to glow. An orb came out and shone brightly right before the attack hit them.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo! Mia! Yuli!" Sage screamed.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Once everything cleared, to everyone' s surprise, Ryo, Yuli and Mia were still alive. Mia was kneeling, holding the orb in her palms. Ryo and Yuli were inside a barrier. Ryo, Yuli, and everyone else stared at Mia.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "How did she do that?" the shadowy figure said. "Can it be? She has the spirit orb! But how can she have the power?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I won't let you destroy this planet or hurt my friends. And for trying to, you'll pay. Spirit Orb, defend yourself!" A bright light came from the orb and went straight toward the shadow figure, killing him. After that, Mia snapped and had a clueless expression. She looked around and asked Ryo, "What happened?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I was just going to ask you the same thing."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No! I won't let her learn about her true power and destroy my plans. I must take this into my own hands," said a voice from above. Down came a beam of light and started to lift Mia off the ground.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Huh? What's going on? Get me down!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo grabbed Mia by the hand and tried to get her down. The guys tried to cut off the beam, but they couldn't. From the sky, a bolt of lightning came down and hit Ryo and Mia. They were both knocked out and the beam took Mia away.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia!" Yuli screamed as the beamed disappeared.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "This is really bad," Rowen said as the others went to check on Ryo. 


	2. Chapter 2

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Two  
  
Â  Â  Â Ryo was outside on the balcony remembering how Mia left. Why did I let her go? It's all my fault! He slammed his fist into the railing.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey, Ryo. How ya doing?" Ryo turned around to see Rowen standing with White Blaze. He rubbed up against Ryo's leg and Ryo gave a little smile, but quickly returned to a frown.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "How do you think? Because of me, Mia's probably dead right now."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It wasn't your fault, man. It was whatever this new evil's fault."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But I told her I would make sure nothing happened to her. I lied to her and broke a promise."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "She's gonna be okay. She's strong enough, and anyway, they are going to want to know what happened to her before they do anything. That gives us a while. When you're ready, you can come to dinner."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Thanks, Rowen." Rowen and White Blaze left Ryo alone. Then a gust of wind went by and Ryo closed his eyes. When he opened them, he saw a strange figure that resembled the Ancient One. He had silver hair and very pale blue eyes. "Who, who are you?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "My name is Hiro. I must talk to you about the girl and what is happening."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Do you mean Mia? Do you know where she is?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I can't talk here for much longer, come to the Heaven's Temple and you will everything and rescue your friend."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But how do I get there?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Follow your heart, Wildfire." Another gust of wind comes and the person is gone.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Rowen, Sage, Kento, Cye! Get the jeep!" Ryo ran inside to get the guys.  
  
Â  Â Â  Â "Lord Persha, your new warrior is here."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let's see. Who are you?" A circle of candles lit up and showed a person in black armor just like Talpa's.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I am Talpa, loyal follower to Master Persha. I will obey your every command, Master."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Very good. You will soon be ready."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Stop here, Rowen." Rowen stopped the car and Ryo got out.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo, are you sure you know what you're doing? You've been under a lot of stress lately," Sage asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "This is the place. Hiro told me to follow my heart and I feel the temple nearby."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "He's finally snapped, you guys."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Give him a chance, Kento. He hasn't been wrong before," Cye said. Ryo, followed by the others, walked into the forest. Ryo looked around and saw a strange rock glowing.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Here it is!" He touched the rock and the ground disappeared from their feet.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!" With the help of their armor, they landed gently on the ground.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, it looks like something's here."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It looks like you've found the Heaven's temple, Wildfire. This proves that you really do care about the girl." A man appeared from nowhere and everyone except Ryo took out their weapons.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It's okay, you guys. He's on our side."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let me introduce myself. My name is Hiro. I have heard that the girl you call Mia has found the Spirit Orb."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What's that?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It must have been the thing around her neck that glowed, but what it have to do with anything?" Cye asked. Hiro held out his hands and a ball of white light appeared.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let me start from the beginning. Look into the light, Ronin Warriors." They did as he said and they saw the story unravel. "A long time ago, a great evil entered this realm and no warrior could destroy it. One day, I prayed to the gods to save my friends and family and I told them that I would do anything to make sure they were okay."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia told us this story. You were given the power and destroyed the evil, right?" Kento asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That is not completely true, Hardrock. I thought I defeated the evil, but I didn't know that there was someone more powerful then the one I destroyed. He caught me off guard, captured me and took me to his realm. He wanted the Spirit Orb, which was given to me by the gods to use my armor. I couldn't let them have it, so I sent it off to be used for good again one day.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Every century, the evil comes back and slowly takes over this realm. Each time it comes, the Spirit Orb comes out of hiding and chooses someone to use its power. It has chosen many warriors to fight the evil, but each time, they fail. This is the last time the evil will be coming into this realm. I have no idea why the Spirit Orb has chosen Mia. She has no fighting experience, but it must have a reason." The ball of light disappeared. "She must defeat this evil this time and she is the only one who can. Not even the Armor of Inferno is strong enough. That's why they took Mia before she knew about its power. But to reach the Armor of the Heavens, she must find the five parts that make up the armor. Her mystic barrier, her soul staff, her sixth sense, and her wings."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But what's the fifth part?" Kento asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No one, not even I, know what the fifth part is. Every other warrior got all the parts, except for the fifth one. We will just have to hope Mia can figure it out. Ronin Warriors, you must get Mia back or it will be the end of this realm as we know it. You must protect her and the Spirit Orb with your lives, or it will spell trouble"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We will do what you say, Hiro, even if it means all of us dying," Rowen said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But how do we get her back? You told me you knew how."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I can't talk anymore, Ronin Warriors. My power is becoming weak. I am trusting you with this task, and do whatever it takes." He turns around and disappears.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Wait!" Ryo screamed, but they all disappeared and wound up back outside. "He didn't tell me how to get Mia back."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Don't worry, Ryo." Sage put his hand on Ryo's shoulder. "We'll get her back."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That isn't your worst problem, Ronins."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What was that?" Rowen looked up into the tree and saw a strange figure. He pointed to it. "Up there. Who are you?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Who am I? You should remember me, Ronins. After all, you did defeat me, didn't you?" The figure came out from the tree and the guys gasped.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It's Talpa! No way. We destroyed him."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Is that what you thought, Wildfire? Now, let's begin." He took two of his swords and started to attack. Rowen shot dozens of arrows, but he dodged every single one.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Man, he's fast. Ryo, I think we should pump up the power."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Right, Rowen. Armor of Inferno!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, well, the Armor of Inferno. This will be fun." Ryo and Talpa started to fight and Talpa took Ryo down in no time. He put one foot on top of Ryo's chest and held his sword to Ryo's neck. "Now, Wildfire, it's time to die."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo looked very seriously at him. Why doesn't he just kill me now?  
  
Â  Â  Â  I don't get this. It should be easy for me to kill Ryo of the Wildfire. But something is holding me back. For some reason, I don't want to hurt him.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Rowen shot one of his arrows at Talpa and hit him in the right shoulder. He lost his grip on his sword and took his foot off of Ryo. He walked backward, took out the arrow, and clutched his shoulder. "You will pay for this, boys!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Talpa, come back now. You are in no condition to fight."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Yes, Master. I will be back to finish this, Ronin Warriors." He disappeared and Ryo got up.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I wonder why he stopped?" Sage said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I don't know, you guys, but it looks like we are up against something more powerful than us," Ryo said.   
  
Â  Â  Â  Hope you are enjoying it so far. 


	3. Chapter 3

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Three  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Master, I am sorry that I have failed you. I am willing to accept any punishment seem fit." He takes off his helmet and Mia's face appears.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "There will be no need for that, Talpa. It is not your fault. They are much younger than you, and quicker. That is why the Dark Warlords couldn't defeat them. They were too old, but I will fix that for you." Persha holds out his hand and a ball of light appears. He throws it at Mia and streams of light surround her. Mia shrunk about an inch and her hair grew to her knees (like Sailor Pluto long). Then the light disappeared and Mia put her helmet back on.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What did you do, Lord Persha?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I made you the same age as the Ronins, so you're at your prime in life. Now, you should be able to defeat them."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "SO, what are we supposed to do now?" Sage asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I say we go and destroy Persha already," Kento said stuffing a cookie in his mouth.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We just can't go in and start destroying everything." Cye and Kento reached for the last cookie at the same time. They looked at each other and chase each other around the house, fighting over the cookie.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We don't have a way to get in, you guys. But we can't destroy Persha; Mia has to, she's the only one. Remember what Hiro said?" Rowen said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Yeah, but we have to get Mia back too."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo, when are we gonna get Mia back?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Soon, Yuli. Don't worry about it. Why don't you go outside with White Blaze for a while? I think he needs the exercise, and you probably don't want to listen to this stuff anyway."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Okay, but I can help if you need any. Come on, White Blaze." Yuli opened the door and let White Blaze go first, then followed. Just as Ryo was about to speak, Yuli screamed. Kento and Cye stopped fighting over the cookie and went with the others outside. They saw Yuli being held by the collar by Talpa.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let go of him, Talpa!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I don't think so, Wildfire."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo, watch out. He's different this time."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What do you mean, Rowen?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Look. Doesn't he look shorter, and his hair is much longer."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That's right. He wasn't like that before."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'm not getting any younger, Ronins. You either fight or give in."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'd rather fight." Kento charged toward Talpa, but was blocked by Yuli. "Yuli."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Let go of Yuli, Talpa. You have nothing against him."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "You're right Torrent, but I do have something against you." He threw Yuli and he hits into a tree. "Now, shall we continue our battle?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Fine with us. Armor of Inferno!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That armor won't help, Ronins." They began to battle, but the guys can't even get close to hitting Talpa.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Man, he got faster quick." Finally, Talpa struck each of the guys onto the ground.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, boys, it looks like you have no other option except surrendering."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Stay away from them!" Yuli ran toward Talpa, but got pushed away. Then White Blaze came out from hiding and knocked Talpa over, making the helmet come off. Everyone gasped as Talpa lifted his head off the ground and looked at them.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No way. It's Mia!" Sage screamed.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Whom are you talking about? MY name is Talpa." She put the helmet back on and got her weapon.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo, get her now. She's out of it," Rowen said. Ryo took out his swords and held them.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I can't hurt Mia." He froze in place from the surprise.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well then, I'll just have to destroy you then, Wildfire."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No, Talpa. Come back to me."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But I can defeat them."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Don't disobey me!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Next time, Ronins." She turned around and disappeared.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Master Persha, I could have destroyed them easily. They had absolutely no power."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It wasn't the time. They were messing with your head."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But I could. And who is Mia? Why did they call me that?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "You do not need to know that."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But I want to know!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Silence." Mia got shocked and screamed in pain.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Huh?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What's wrong, Ryo?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo looked at the sky and then at Cye. "Nothing's wrong. I just thought I heard something. Or someone." 


	4. Chapter 4

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Four  
  
      Ryo laid down on his bed and stares at the ceiling. I can't believe we almost destroyed Mia. I'm glad we know she's okay, but how are we gonna get her back? He sat up and saw that the window next to him was open. He turned around and closed it. When he looked back, he saw Mia in her kimono sitting at the end of his bed. "Mia? Is that you?"  
  
      "I'm glad you still remember me, Ryo, but I need you to do something for me."  
  
      "Anything."  
  
      "The next time we meet, you must destroy me."  
  
      "What! I can't do that."  
  
      "Ryo you must. Listen. Slowly, the Mia you know is disappearing and an evil one is taking her place. I'm afraid after our next fight, I'll be gone forever. Somehow, you need to capture me and destroy me with your Rage of Inferno. I'll help you out, but you're the only one who can save me."  
  
      "But I can't destroy you."  
  
      "Ryo, good can only destroy evil, but good can't destroy good. Please, Ryo. If you really cared for me, you would grant me my wish to be happy and dead, rather than alive and in pain."  
  
      "Okay, but I'm only doing this because you want me to."  
  
      "Thank you, Ryo." Her eyes became all glassy looking. She leaned over, kissed him, and leaned back. Once Ryo blinked, he saw Mia was gone.  
  
      Was that a dream? "Hey, you guys! We need to do something now!" He gets up and runs out the door.  
  
      "So, Talpa, have you learned your lesson, or do you want to go back into the pit?"  
  
      "I'm sorry, Master Persha. I guess the Ronins were playing mind tricks with me. But I have a plan that will destroy them for good."  
  
      "Fine then, but never disobey me again."  
  
      "Yes, Master." She got up and started to walk away. If you won't tell me who Mia is, then I'll have to find out from someone else.  
  
      "Do you really think this is going to work, Ryo?"  
  
      "I know it is, Sage, and with Mia's help, it should definitely work."  
  
      "Ryo, I think that seeing Mia as Talpa has just freaked you out. Maybe you just imagined Mia."  
  
      "Cye's right, Ryo. I mean, you have been under a lot of stress, and this seems kind of weird," Kento said.  
  
      "You guys have to believe in Ryo."  
  
      "Yuli's right. Ryo was right about Hiro," Rowen said. A soldier came in through the front window and started to attack. The guys came out of the house and saw they were surrounded by dozens of soldiers.  
  
      "Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!" They begin to fight and take them out in no time.  
  
      "Well, Ronin Warriors, I hope that was a good enough warmup for you." They turned around and saw Mia coming out of the darkness.  
  
      "Mia, listen to us. We don't want to hurt you."  
  
      "Let me tell you one more time. My name is not Mia!" She attacked Cye and sent him flying. Yuli ran and hid behind a tree while everyone except Ryo started to fight.  
  
      "All right, Talpa. Why don't you try this? Thunderbolt Cut!" Mia stayed in place and all of a sudden changed to the original Mia in her kimono.  
  
      "Sage! What are you doing?"  
  
      "Mia? Oh no! Stop!" Mia fell to her knees and the light disappeared. Everyone stared at the motionless Mia looking at the ground. Yuli peeked from behind the tree and saw her.  
  
      "Mia!" He came out from behind the tree and gave Mia a big hug. "I'm so glad you're back." Mia gave a hug back.  
  
      "I'm glad too, Yuli."  
  
      "I don't get this."  
  
      "What don't you get, Ryo?" Kento asked.  
  
      "Mia told me I was the only one who could destroy her. She didn't say anything about you guys." White Blaze looked at Mia and saw her eyes glow red. He started to roar and pounced toward her. "White Blaze, what are you doing?" White Blaze pushed Yuli out of Mia's arms, and she hit him back.  
  
      "Well, well, tiger, you're a lot smarter than you look." She transformed back into her armor. "Are you ready to surrender, boys?"  
  
      "NO way. Rowen, now!" Rowen shot four arrows with ropes attached and shot them at Mia. They wrapped around her and tacked her to two trees.  
  
      "Now what do we do, Ryo?" Kento asked.  
  
      "We hope that Mia is here right now."  
  
      "You think that a couple of ropes will save you boys?" She started to pull at the arrow, until a strange light surrounded her. "What?" She started to scream from the pain.  
  
      "Ryo, do it now."  
  
      "Armor of Inferno! Rage…"  
  
      "Ryo, what's wrong?"  
  
      "I, I can't do it."  
  
      "Ryo, listen to me. I can't hold myself much longer. Remember what I told you."  
  
      "Good can only destroy evil, but good can't destroy good. That's it! Rage of Inferno!" The attack went straight for Mia and her eyes opened wide and she screamed at the impact of the blast. Once it's gone, Mia appeared in her kimono with the Spirit Orb around her neck and still hanging from the ropes. They snapped and she fell to the ground. Ryo also fell from the exhaustion. Yuli ran over to Mia and looked at her.  
  
      "Mia? Is it really you?" She slowly opened her eyes.  
  
      "I hope so." Yuli smiled and gave her a hug.  
  
      "No. This can't be. Come back to me now." The clouds above separated and a beam of light started to come down.  
  
      "Yuli, get out of here." Mia pushed him out of the way and was caught by the beam.  
  
      "Oh no, Mia."  
  
      "I will not let you have the power of the orb."  
  
      "I won't let you turn me against my friends again. Spirit Orb, defend yourself." Beams of light came from the orb and broke the beam, sending Mia to the ground surrounded by a layer of light. Once she reached the ground, the light disappeared, leaving Mia in a new outfit. She was in a blue bodysuit with a silver miniskirt. She has silver armor on her shoulders, shins, feet, lower arms, and hands. The Spirit Orb was still around her neck.  
  
      "Well, what do we do now?" Ryo picked up Mia and started taking her inside.  
  
      "We wait and see what happens." 


	5. Chapter 4

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Four  
  
      Ryo laid down on his bed and stares at the ceiling. I can't believe we almost destroyed Mia. I'm glad we know she's okay, but how are we gonna get her back? He sat up and saw that the window next to him was open. He turned around and closed it. When he looked back, he saw Mia in her kimono sitting at the end of his bed. "Mia? Is that you?"  
  
      "I'm glad you still remember me, Ryo, but I need you to do something for me."  
  
      "Anything."  
  
      "The next time we meet, you must destroy me."  
  
      "What! I can't do that."  
  
      "Ryo you must. Listen. Slowly, the Mia you know is disappearing and an evil one is taking her place. I'm afraid after our next fight, I'll be gone forever. Somehow, you need to capture me and destroy me with your Rage of Inferno. I'll help you out, but you're the only one who can save me."  
  
      "But I can't destroy you."  
  
      "Ryo, good can only destroy evil, but good can't destroy good. Please, Ryo. If you really cared for me, you would grant me my wish to be happy and dead, rather than alive and in pain."  
  
      "Okay, but I'm only doing this because you want me to."  
  
      "Thank you, Ryo." Her eyes became all glassy looking. She leaned over, kissed him, and leaned back. Once Ryo blinked, he saw Mia was gone.  
  
      Was that a dream? "Hey, you guys! We need to do something now!" He gets up and runs out the door.  
  
      "So, Talpa, have you learned your lesson, or do you want to go back into the pit?"  
  
      "I'm sorry, Master Persha. I guess the Ronins were playing mind tricks with me. But I have a plan that will destroy them for good."  
  
      "Fine then, but never disobey me again."  
  
      "Yes, Master." She got up and started to walk away. If you won't tell me who Mia is, then I'll have to find out from someone else.  
  
      "Do you really think this is going to work, Ryo?"  
  
      "I know it is, Sage, and with Mia's help, it should definitely work."  
  
      "Ryo, I think that seeing Mia as Talpa has just freaked you out. Maybe you just imagined Mia."  
  
      "Cye's right, Ryo. I mean, you have been under a lot of stress, and this seems kind of weird," Kento said.  
  
      "You guys have to believe in Ryo."  
  
      "Yuli's right. Ryo was right about Hiro," Rowen said. A soldier came in through the front window and started to attack. The guys came out of the house and saw they were surrounded by dozens of soldiers.  
  
      "Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!" They begin to fight and take them out in no time.  
  
      "Well, Ronin Warriors, I hope that was a good enough warmup for you." They turned around and saw Mia coming out of the darkness.  
  
      "Mia, listen to us. We don't want to hurt you."  
  
      "Let me tell you one more time. My name is not Mia!" She attacked Cye and sent him flying. Yuli ran and hid behind a tree while everyone except Ryo started to fight.  
  
      "All right, Talpa. Why don't you try this? Thunderbolt Cut!" Mia stayed in place and all of a sudden changed to the original Mia in her kimono.  
  
      "Sage! What are you doing?"  
  
      "Mia? Oh no! Stop!" Mia fell to her knees and the light disappeared. Everyone stared at the motionless Mia looking at the ground. Yuli peeked from behind the tree and saw her.  
  
      "Mia!" He came out from behind the tree and gave Mia a big hug. "I'm so glad you're back." Mia gave a hug back.  
  
      "I'm glad too, Yuli."  
  
      "I don't get this."  
  
      "What don't you get, Ryo?" Kento asked.  
  
      "Mia told me I was the only one who could destroy her. She didn't say anything about you guys." White Blaze looked at Mia and saw her eyes glow red. He started to roar and pounced toward her. "White Blaze, what are you doing?" White Blaze pushed Yuli out of Mia's arms, and she hit him back.  
  
      "Well, well, tiger, you're a lot smarter than you look." She transformed back into her armor. "Are you ready to surrender, boys?"  
  
      "NO way. Rowen, now!" Rowen shot four arrows with ropes attached and shot them at Mia. They wrapped around her and tacked her to two trees.  
  
      "Now what do we do, Ryo?" Kento asked.  
  
      "We hope that Mia is here right now."  
  
      "You think that a couple of ropes will save you boys?" She started to pull at the arrow, until a strange light surrounded her. "What?" She started to scream from the pain.  
  
      "Ryo, do it now."  
  
      "Armor of Inferno! Rage…"  
  
      "Ryo, what's wrong?"  
  
      "I, I can't do it."  
  
      "Ryo, listen to me. I can't hold myself much longer. Remember what I told you."  
  
      "Good can only destroy evil, but good can't destroy good. That's it! Rage of Inferno!" The attack went straight for Mia and her eyes opened wide and she screamed at the impact of the blast. Once it's gone, Mia appeared in her kimono with the Spirit Orb around her neck and still hanging from the ropes. They snapped and she fell to the ground. Ryo also fell from the exhaustion. Yuli ran over to Mia and looked at her.  
  
      "Mia? Is it really you?" She slowly opened her eyes.  
  
      "I hope so." Yuli smiled and gave her a hug.  
  
      "No. This can't be. Come back to me now." The clouds above separated and a beam of light started to come down.  
  
      "Yuli, get out of here." Mia pushed him out of the way and was caught by the beam.  
  
      "Oh no, Mia."  
  
      "I will not let you have the power of the orb."  
  
      "I won't let you turn me against my friends again. Spirit Orb, defend yourself." Beams of light came from the orb and broke the beam, sending Mia to the ground surrounded by a layer of light. Once she reached the ground, the light disappeared, leaving Mia in a new outfit. She was in a blue bodysuit with a silver miniskirt. She has silver armor on her shoulders, shins, feet, lower arms, and hands. The Spirit Orb was still around her neck.  
  
      "Well, what do we do now?" Ryo picked up Mia and started taking her inside.  
  
      "We wait and see what happens." 


	6. Chapter 5

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Five  
  
      Mia laid in her bed, with the Spirit Orb around her neck, and started to roll around. She began to open her eyes and saw a giant white tiger. "Huh? Tiger!" Mia, looking very scared, slowly started to move to the other side of the bed. "Good tiger. Stay right where you are." White Blaze jumped onto the bed and started moving towards her. She fell off the side of the bed and White Blaze jumped off the bed too. "Stay away from me!" She backed up into the wall.  
  
      "Hey, White Blaze. Give Mia some room." White Blaze moved and Ryo squatted down in front. "How are you doing, Mia? You had quite a battle."  
  
      "Huh? Who are you? What are you doing in my house? Get out of my house, or I'll call the police!"  
  
      "Mia, it's me, Ryo. Don't you remember the guys and me? Remember Rowen, Cye, Sage, and Kento? We've been living with you for a while." Mia looked up at the guys and inspected them.  
  
      "Why doesn't she remember anything?" Kento asked.  
  
      "That battle must have been too hard on her," Sage said. Mia looked back at Ryo.  
  
      "I don't remember you or any other boys living here, but you can stay here, I guess. Where's Grandfather?"  
  
      "Um, he's been dead for a while, Mia."  
  
      "What?" As she looked like she's going to cry, White Blaze licked her on the face.  
  
      "Tiger!" she screamed, going back into the wall more. Ryo pet him on the head.  
  
      "Don't be scared. This is White Blaze. He's as gentle as a lamb, as long as you feed him and you're not evil." Mia slowly inched her hand toward him and pet him. He purred and rubbed against her.  
  
      "He isn't that bad."  
  
      "Ryo! Mia! Is anyone home?"  
  
      "Do you think you guys could go check that out?"  
  
      "Sure, Ryo." The guys left and went to the living room, leaving Ryo alone with Mia.  
  
      "Hey, you guys. Where were you?"  
  
      "We were just checking on Mia, Yuli. She woke up."  
  
      "That's great."  
  
      "Listen, Yuli," Rowen said, "Mia isn't herself."  
  
      "It looks like she forgot everything, including who everyone is. So, you have to be careful."  
  
      "Okay, Cye."  
  
      "We're going to need your help with Mia, Yuli. You're going to have to help us protect her. Do you think you can do that?"  
  
      "Sure I can, Sage. You can count on me."  
  
      "Who was that screaming?" Mia said entering the living room, peeking over Ryo's shoulder.  
  
      "Hey, Mia. How are you doing? I'm here for the extra help you promised me." She squatted down and looks at Yuli.  
  
      "I'm sorry, but who are you?"  
  
      "Oh yeah. I'm Yuli. I'm glad you're okay."  
  
      "Well, Yuli, it's nice to meet you. Now, how about that help you need? I may not know what's going on around here, but I still remember the things that I learned in school." Yuli took Mia's hand and pulled her into the dining room.  
  
      "Okay, you guys, what are we supposed to do about Mia?" Kento asked.  
  
      "Well, I guess we should watch her for now. We'll take turns looking after her," Rowen said.  
  
      "Persha is gonna want to get Mia back."  
  
      "We promised Hiro that we would protect Mia, though, Sage, no matter what, and that's what we're gonna do. It's not going to be easy though…"  
  
      "But we have to do it anyway. She's the only one who can defeat Persha, I hope," Ryo said, finishing off Cye's sentence.  
  
      "Mia, I still can't get it."  
  
      "Let's try it this way." She took the pencil from Yuli and started to write, but suddenly froze.  
  
      "Mia? Mia? Wake up." He shook Mia, but she didn't unfreeze. "You guys! Something's wrong with Mia!" Everyone ran into the dining room.  
  
      "What's wrong, Yuli?" Ryo asked.  
  
      "Mia was writing something down, and all of a sudden she just froze in place." Kento went over to Mia.  
  
      "Hey, Mia, what's up?" He put his hand on her shoulder and Mia snapped. She took his wrist and flipped him over her onto the table, breaking it in half.  
  
      "Huh? Kento?"  
  
      "Who says girls aren't stronger than boys?" Kento said.  
  
      "Hey, Kento, how ya feeling?" Cye asked.  
  
      "I'm so sorry, Kento," Mia said as Cye and Rowen helped Kento off the floor and got him onto his feet.  
  
      "What happened to you, Mia?" Sage asks.  
  
      "I don't know. I was helping Yuli and this really strange feeling came over me, like someone was watching me or something. Then when Kento put his hand on my shoulder, I guess I just snapped. I'm so sorry, you guys."  
  
      Persha sat on his throne in a dim-lighted room between two candles. "I can't believe that the girl got away. If she figures out the true power of the Spirit Orb, then we're in trouble," Persha says.  
  
      "You won't have to worry about that, Master Persha. I will take care of the girl personally," Kryos said with one knee on the ground.  
  
      "Watch out for the Ronin Warriors, Kryos. They will probably do anything to protect the girl."  
  
      "I will not fail you."  
  
      Mia sat outside by the pond nearby with her legs in the water knee- high. She closed her eyes and just let her hair blow in the wind. She may have forgotten some things, but she hasn't forgotten how warm the sun is and how cool the water is. She laid down and let her hair sprawl out everywhere. She opened her eyes and saw White Blaze's face. "What in the…"  
  
      "Hi, Mia," Yuli said on White Blaze's back. Mia breathed in relief.  
  
      "You guys scared me."  
  
      "Sorry, Mia. We just wanted to see how you were doing."  
  
      "I'm fine, Ryo. Don't worry about me." A spear came from nowhere and landed right by Mia's feet. She jumped up and got out of the water. From the woods, they could see dozens of soldiers ready for battle. "What are those?"  
  
      "Soldiers. Mia, we gotta get out of here." Ryo turned into his subarmor, grabbed Mia's wrist, and went toward the house. Yuli on White Blaze followed Ryo and Mia.  
  
      "What's happening, Ryo? What's going on?"  
  
      "I can't explain it now. We just gotta get back to the house quick." The soldiers came after them and followed them. "Mia, get yourself and Yuli back to the house and get the guys."  
  
      "Okay, Ryo. Let's go, Mia." Mia got on White Blaze and went back to the house.  
  
      I gotta make sure that no one gets hold of Mia.  
  
      Mia came running into the house and all the guys popped up.  
  
      "Mia, what's wrong?" Kento asked.  
  
      "There were some weird things coming from the woods and attacking us. Ryo stayed behind to fight them."  
  
      "We gotta go help him, you guys," Rowen said. They got up and went outside and saw Ryo coming out from the woods in his armor.  
  
      "What's taking you guys so long? Come on."  
  
      "Armor of Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!"  
  
      "Well, it looks like everyone is here," a stranger said from the woods.  
  
      "Who are you?" Sage asked.  
  
      "Let me introduce myself. My name is Kryos, follower of Master Persha. I've come here for the girl, so just give her to me and I won't have to kill you."  
  
      "What?" Mia said.  
  
      "There's no way we're going to let you take Mia. Yuli, White Blaze, get out of here and make sure no one gets even close to Mia."  
  
      "Right, Cye. Come on, Mia." Yuli got Mia out of the way.  
  
      "Well then, I guess I'm just gonna have to kill you boys."  
  
      "I don't think so. Armor of Inferno."  
  
      "AHHHHHHH!" Mia ducked as a spear came toward her. White Blaze attacked the soldiers and tried to destroy as many of them as he could. Mia and Yuli ran away and tried to get away from the soldiers.  
  
      "Is this your best shot, Wildfire?"  
  
      "Not at all. Rage of Inferno!" The attack missed and Kryos came straight at Ryo with a pair of swords. Ryo blocked it, but lost one of his swords.  
  
      "Mia, I want to get out of here."  
  
      "I know, Yuli, so do I." From the sky Ryo's sword came down in front of Mia and made her fall to the ground.  
  
      "Mia, are you okay?"  
  
      "Yeah, I'm just fine." She looked into the sword. Ryo and the others must be in trouble. The Spirit Orb around Mia's neck started to glow and her reflection in the sword turned to one of a man in armor a silver armor.  
  
      "Well, Wildfire, what are you gonna do now?"  
  
      Ryo stood his ground, but was getting scared. What am I supposed to do now?  
  
      "You're gonna leave him alone, Kryos."  
  
      "What?" He looked up at the roof and sees Mia holding one of Ryo's swords.  
  
      "Mia! Get down from there!" Rowen screamed. Mia jumped to the ground and looks straight at Kryos.  
  
      "So, Kryos. Are you ready for a fight? One sword each, or are you scared?"  
  
      "This will be lots of fun." Kryos dropped one of his swords and they looked at each other.  
  
      "Mia, what are you doing?" Kento asked.  
  
      "Leave me alone, Hardrock."  
  
      "Hardrock? She never called me Hardrock before."  
  
      "Hey, you guys, I don't think that's Mia."  
  
      "What?" Sage pointed his sword towards Mia and her reflection is of someone else.  
  
      "Maybe it's one of the wearers of the armor before Mia. Maybe one of them took over her body or something," Rowen suggests.  
  
      "I guess it makes sense," Ryo commented.  
  
      "What are you waiting for, girl?"  
  
      "I'm waiting for you to make your first move." Kryos started and Mia blocked his first move. They began to fight. They clashed with each other several times, being a match for each other, until Mia finally charged towards him and sliced his chest. Kryos looked at his chest and placed his hand on it.  
  
      "This can't be. I can't be defeated by a girl. I will be back and next time, you will pay." He disappeared. Mia, with one knee on the ground holding Ryo's sword, suddenly snapped out of her trance and fell to both knees.  
  
      "Wha, what happened?" She looked at her hands and saw the sword. "Ryo, is this your sword?" She got up and handed it to him.  
  
      I can't believe that girl beat me. How will Master Persha feel about this, me beaten by a mortal girl? She will pay for this with her life. 


	7. Chapter 6

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Six  
  
      Mia walked down the street in a blue t-shirt and jeans with Ryo next to her in his street clothes, both carrying grocery bags. "Thanks for coming with me, Ryo. I never knew Kento could eat so much."  
  
      "It's okay, Mia. I guess you didn't remember about Kento's appetite, and anyway, I needed the air." Plus, this is the best way I can watch you. They continued walking down the street until Mia saw a fountain out of the corner of her eye.  
  
      "Ryo, could we make one more stop? I want to make a wish in the fountain."  
  
      "I guess so." Mia ran over and put down the bags. She opened her purse and took out two pennies. She handed one to Ryo.  
  
      "Here, Ryo. You have to make a wish too." Mia turned her back, closed her eyes, and tossed the penny over her shoulder. Ryo did the same thing, except he tripped over the edge of the side and fell into the fountain. Mia started to laugh as Ryo sat himself up. "You're supposed to throw the penny in, not yourself."  
  
      "Very funny, Mia."  
  
      Mia looked at her watch. "Oh, no. I promised the others we would be back an hour ago. Stay here with the bags, Ryo. I'm going to get the car." She started to run as Ryo got out of the fountain. He saw a car coming close to a mud puddle.  
  
      "Mia! Watch out!" Mia stopped by the curb and looked back at Ryo and then back at the road. The car came by and went straight through the mud puddle, covering Mia totally in mud. "I tried to warn you, Mia." Mia wiped the mud from her face and looked very frustrated. She ignored everything and went straight for the car.  
  
      "How could you let her defeat you, Kryos?" Persha slammed his hand on the arm of his throne.  
  
      "I am sorry, Master Persha, but she caught me off-guard."  
  
      "Well then, this time make sure you aren't caught off-guard."  
  
      "Yes, Master."  
  
      "Where's Mia and Ryo? They were supposed to be here an hour ago. I'm starving."  
  
      "All you can think about is your stomach, Kento," Sage said.  
  
      "What if something happened to them?"  
  
      "We're fine, you guys," Ryo said, coming in with two bags in his hands.  
  
      "All right! Food!" Mia walked in after him with two more bags. Everyone stared at her. "Mia, what happened to you?" Everyone started to giggle.  
  
      "Don't ask, Kento. I'm gonna take a bath. Don't disturb me for the next hour." She put down the bags and went to the bathroom.  
  
      Kryos floated in the air, looking at Mia's house. "You will pay for what you've done, girl. I promise I will make you pay."  
  
      "This feels so good. I should do this more often," Mia said in the tub taking a bubble bath. "But it's so hard to when I have to take care of Yuli and help out the guys." She made a spiral in the water with her finger and relaxed. She put her hair up and laid back. "It's so nice and quiet."  
  
      Mia looked through the window above the tub and saw a soldier's face. "Ahhh!" She popped out of the tub and covered herself in the shower curtain. She started running towards the door as the soldier came through the window, smashing the wall. She ran out the door and down the hallway and bumped into Ryo. They both fell to the ground.  
  
      "Mia, what's wrong? We heard you screaming," Ryo asked, getting up.  
  
      "And shouldn't you be in clothes?" Kento asked.  
  
      "There was… a soldier… looking at me… through the window in the bathroom… and then it came through and tried to attack me."  
  
      "Are you sure, Mia?" Rowen asked.  
  
      "I'm sure. I'll show you." She got up and took them to the bathroom. She opened the door and everything was normal. "What? Where's the smashed wall?"  
  
      "Mia, you must be stressed out or something. Everything is fine."  
  
      "I'm telling you the truth, Sage." She looked around and noticed the shower curtain was up even though she was wearing it. As the guys started to leave, she stopped. "Wait a minute, you guys. The shower curtain is back up even though I'm wearing it. It's the same kind too."  
  
      "Mia's right," Cye said, "they just did this to fool us. We better look outside to see if anyone is there." All the guys went outside and Mia followed with one hand holding up the curtain.  
  
      "I don't see anything here," Ryo commented.  
  
      "Maybe it was just to scare us."  
  
      "That isn't like them though, Rowen." They continued to look as Mia saw something around the corner of the house.  
  
      "I wonder?" She went to the corner and turned. All of a sudden she screamed.  
  
      "What? Hey, where's Mia?" They ran around the corner and saw Kryos holding Mia upside down by a leg.  
  
      Mia, with one hand still holding together the shower curtain and the other the end closer to her feet up so the curtain wouldn't fall down said, "I told you something was wrong."  
  
      "Let go of her, Kryos."  
  
      "I don't think so, Wildfire. She is going to pay for what she has done to me." He raised her up and started to swing her back and forth slightly, like a pendulum.  
  
      "You guys, I don't want to bother you or anything, but I need some help here!"  
  
      "I said let her go now."  
  
      "Okay, then. I'll let her go." Still holding Mia by the foot, he slammed her into the tree. Mia screamed out in pain.  
  
      "What are you doing to her?" Rowen said.  
  
      "Letting her go, like Wildfire said." He let go of Mia's leg and threw her into a window. Mia fell to the ground surrounded by broken glass, unconscious.  
  
      "That's it. Armor of Wildfire, Halo, Strata, Torrent, Hardrock!" In a flash, the guys were in their armor. Kryos attacked and all the guys dodged him. "Armor of Inferno!"  
  
      "So, you think that your puny armor is going to defeat me?"  
  
      "This armor isn't as puny as you think." They began to fight, clashing swords with each other. The guys stayed back, ready to help out Ryo if needed.  
  
      "Dark Ice Strike!"  
  
      "Rage of Inferno!" The two powers clashed, but Kryos' attack was more powerful and hit Ryo, sending him straight into the wall.  
  
      "You're right, Wildfire. That armor isn't puny, it's worse than puny."  
  
      "Oh man. What are we supposed to do now?"  
  
      "I have no idea, Cye, but we have to do something."  
  
      If I can't use my armor, then how am I supposed to defeat Kryos?  
  
      Mia laid on the ground in one of the bedrooms, not moving. Something's wrong. Kryos is beating Ryo and the Inferno. I wish I could do something to help them. I don't want to see them hurt. The symbol of love appeared on Mia's forehead and the Spirit Orb began to glow. It left the room and went outside.  
  
      "Why don't you just give up, Ronins?"  
  
      "We'll never give up," Ryo saif. All of a sudden, the Spirit Orb hovered above the guys and covered each of them in a white light.  
  
      "What's happening? I feel stronger," Kento said.  
  
      "I don't know, Kento." After a couple of seconds, the Spirit Orb disappeared.  
  
      "Well, it looks like you boys had a little break. I hope you know it's going to be back. Dark Ice Strike!"  
  
      "Thunderbolt Cut!" Sage's attack cut off Kryos' attack.  
  
      "No way. What was that?" Cye asked.  
  
      "We weren't able to use our power before when Ryo uses the Inferno."  
  
      "Maybe it was that light that helped us," Rowen said.  
  
      "How could this be?"  
  
      "All right then, Kryos, let's finish this. Rage of Inferno!" The attack hit Kryos and he screamed.  
  
      "NO! This can't be! You will pay with the girl, Ronin Warriors!" He disappeared.  
  
      "Well, that was a surprise."  
  
      "What about Mia?" They all went through the window and checked on Mia. She started to move around. "Mia, are you all right?"  
  
      "I think so, Ryo." Mia began to get up, but started to fall back down. Ryo grabbed her and carried her in his arms. She had little cuts all over her from the broken glass.  
  
      "Let's make sure you're okay and get you into some clothes, okay?" Sage asked.  
  
      "That sounds like a good idea," Mia said with her hands around Ryo's neck.  
  
      "And don't worry, Mia, you won't have to take a bath," Kento commented. Everyone laughed a little. Ryo went toward the door and Mia put her chin on Ryo's shoulder, looking out the window.  
  
      Why can't you just leave us alone, Kryos? What have we done to you? We just want to live in peace. 


	8. Chapter 7

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Seven  
  
      "What happened during the battle, Kryos?"  
  
      "I do not know, Master Persha. All of a sudden, the boys became more powerful. I wasn't expecting it to happen."  
  
      "I've told you not to underestimate them."  
  
      "I know, Master. This will be the last time I underestimate them."  
  
      "It better be, Kryos, or else."  
  
      "Yes, Master."  
  
      "Hey, you guys, it snowed last night!" Ryo looked out the window and saw that everything was covered in a blanket of snow. "Can I go outside, Ryo? Please?"  
  
      "Not yet, Yuli. After we eat, we'll go outside." They walked downstairs with White Blaze behind them and went into the dining room where they saw everyone, except Rowen, at the table.  
  
      "Hey, you guys, how are you this morning?"  
  
      "We're fine, Cye. Hey, Mia, did you finish your work?" Mia lifted herself from her sulking position.  
  
      "Huh? Um, yeah."  
  
      "Hey, Mia, it looks like you didn't get any sleep."  
  
      "I couldn't sleep last night. Something was just bothering me, I guess."  
  
      "Ryo, can I go outside now?"  
  
      "Sure, Yuli."  
  
      "Yeah! Come on, White Blaze. Come on, Mia." He grabbed Mia by the arm and pulled her off the chair and toward the door.  
  
      "Hey, wait for us!" Kento stuffed one more egg in his mouth and went toward the door with Sage and Cye behind him. Kento, Cye, and Sage went outside with their subarmor on, while Mia and Yuli wore their heavy coats. Ryo leaned against the window, looking out as Rowen came down the stairs yawning and stretching.  
  
      "Mornin', Ryo. If you want to go outside so badly, just go."  
  
      "I don't feel like going outside, Ro."  
  
      "Then why are you looking outside?"  
  
      "I'm just thinking about Mia."  
  
      "What about?"  
  
      "Well, lately she hasn't been getting any sleep because she's been up all night. She says that something is bothering her. I think it has to do something with Persha."  
  
      "So?"  
  
      "Look at her right now, Ro." Rowen stares at Mia running outside after Sage. Kento hit her in the head with a snowball and she threw one back at him. "She looks so happy and carefree. She doesn't know what's ahead of her. She's just living her life like a normal person. I'm afraid that once she finds out about her armor and everything, she won't be able to live her life like this anymore. Don't you remember when you found out about your armor and how everything changed?"  
  
      "I remember, Ryo. But Mia has been through this kind of stuff before, with Talpa. It probably won't be that much of a difference."  
  
      "Maybe you're right, Rowen."  
  
      "Gotcha, Mia!"  
  
      "Hey! That was a cheap shot, Kento!" Two more snowballs hit Mia from behind. "Cye! Sage! Why is everyone ganging up on me?" She chased after Cye and Sage with two huge snowballs, but saws a pair of glowing eyes in the woods. Huh? I wonder what that was.  
  
      She went into the woods through all the branches. She saw s a pair of eyes, and something jumped out from behind a tree. "White Blaze? Don't scare me like that. I guess those eyes were yours."  
  
      She started to walk out with White Blaze and looked behind her. She saw the glowing eyes again, but they disappeared. If White Blaze is here, then what was that? Mia got hit in the head. "Kento!"  
  
      Mia sat up in bed with her knees toward her chest. What was that thing that I saw today? I thought it was White Blaze, but it couldn't have been. He was right next to me. Mia got out of bed and readjusted her long, blue nightgown. She walked out of her room and towards the living room.  
  
      As she went into the kitchen, she heard something coming from outside. "What's that? Maybe it's what I saw earlier today." She went to the window and saw something coming towards the door. She grabbed a book by the nearby table and waits by the door. When the door opened, she hit the thing on the head with the book.  
  
      "Ow!" Mia looked around and saw White Blaze.  
  
      "Huh?"  
  
      Mia came out of the kitchen with two cups of tea and a bag of ice. She placed the stuff on the table and sat on the rug against the couch next to Ryo, who was in a tee-shirt and pajama pants. "I'm so sorry I hit you over the head, Ryo. I thought you were a burglar or... something."  
  
      "It's okay, Mia." He put the bag of ice on his head where Mia hit him.  
  
      "What were you doing up, anyway?"  
  
      "I couldn't get to sleep. My mind was too overwhelmed, so I decided to go outside and do some practicing. Then I thought I would come inside, and well, you know what happened next. Why are you up?"  
  
      "Well, if I told you, you would probably think I was crazy or something." She took a sip of her tea.  
  
      "Trust me, Mia. Nothing can be stranger than what I've gone through, and I've gone through plenty."  
  
      "Well, I've been seeing and hearing things lately. I always have a feeling that someone is watching my every move. That's why I couldn't sleep the past couple of days. Earlier today, I saw something in the woods and went to go check it out. First, I thought it was only White Blaze, but when he was with me, I saw the thing again." She looked at her tea and looked at Ryo with a little smile. "That sounds crazy, doesn't it?"  
  
      "Not at all, Mia." Why hasn't she figured out everything yet?  
  
Next morning  
  
      Kento, Rowen, Cye and Sage looked at Mia and Ryo sleeping on the floor. Mia had her head on Ryo's chest and his arm around her. They all started to whisper to each other. "What should we do, Sage?"  
  
      "Maybe we should wake them up."  
  
      "But they look so cute together. Maybe we should wait a little longer," Rowen said.  
  
      "They have to wake up sometime." Kento kneeled down and started to tickle Mia's right foot, while Cye tickled one of Ryo's feet. They both started to squirm around and finally Mia opened her eyes.  
  
      "What time is it?"  
  
      "It's time to wake up."  
  
      Mia got on her feet and stretched while Ryo sat up against the couch. "I guess I should get ready. We have to go shopping today, anyway. Thanks, Ryo." Mia fixed her nightgown and walked toward her room. Ryo stretched his arms out and yawned.  
  
      "So, Ryo, what were you doing in the living room with Mia last night?" Rowen asked.  
  
      "Mia couldn't get to sleep and neither could I, so we stayed up a while and talked."  
  
      "Are you sure?"  
  
      Ryo started to blush. "Yeah, I'm sure."  
  
      "You know, I think Ryo has a little thing going on for Mia. That's why he was so worried about her and why he was looking at her yesterday."  
  
      "It does make sense, Ryo."  
  
      "Cut it out, you guys."  
  
      Kryos stood on top of a cliff, looking down at the road. "Soon those Ronin Warriors and the girl will get what they deserve."  
  
      "Hey, Rowen, you know where we're going?"  
  
      "Of course I know, Kento. I'm not dumb."  
  
      "Yeah. He's smarter then some people I know," Cye said.  
  
      "Yeah. Hey, were you talking about me?" Kento asked. Everyone began to laugh, but Mia stopped suddenly. She looked at the road ahead where there was a giant cliff.  
  
      Hmm. I know something's out there, but what? Huh! "Rowen, get off the road now!"  
  
      "What?" Mia grabbed the wheel and steered the car off the road.  
  
      "What did you do that for, Mia?" Ryo asked. They heard a rumble and saw that several boulders came rolling down the cliffside. "Mia, did you know…"  
  
      "Did you know that those boulders were going to come down?" Sage asked.  
  
      "I felt something, but I didn't know what. Huh?"  
  
      "What is it?"  
  
      "Get out of the car." Everyone got out of the car before a giant blast came toward the car and destroyed it.  
  
      "Well, I guess you boys had some luck today."  
  
      "Kryos! Why don't you just leave us alone?"  
  
      "Because if I did that, I wouldn't have any fun. Dark Ice Strike!" Everyone jumped out of the way, except for Mia.  
  
      "Mia, watch out!" Mia jumped into the air just before the attack hit the ground and landed on a rock coming out of the cliff about ten feet off the ground.  
  
      "Wow. I didn't know I could do that."  
  
      "The girl is starting to develop her skills as a warrior. I better be careful."  
  
      "Thunderbolt Cut!"  
  
      "Arrow Shock Wave!"  
  
      "Flare Up Now!" The attacks hit Kryos straight on and he screamed in pain.  
  
      "I wasn't ready, Ronins, but I will be next time." He disappeared in a flash. Mia jumped off the rock and landed on the ground.  
  
      "Hey, Mia. I never knew you could do that."  
  
      "Neither did I." 


	9. Chapter 8

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Eight  
  
      "How could you let them beat you like that, Kryos?"  
  
      "I'm sorry, Master. I was just surprised at the girl. She has already started to develop her skills."  
  
      "You told me that you wouldn't underestimate them anymore!"  
  
      "I'm sorry. I am truly sorry. Please, forgive me."  
  
      "Fine. Well then, we will just have to get rid of her now before she develops them any further."  
  
      "I have the perfect plan, Master. I won't fail you."  
  
      "If you ask me, that last battle was way too easy," Sage said.  
  
      "I know. We didn't have to use the Armor of Inferno," Rowen commented.  
  
      "Maybe he's getting weaker."  
  
      "I doubt that." Ryo pet White Blaze on the head, but then he roared. "White Blaze, what's wrong?" White Blaze went toward the door and Ryo opened it for him. He ran outside and froze in place. Everyone else followed White Blaze outside. "I haven't seen White Blaze like this before."  
  
      "Hey, you guys." The guys turned toward Mia and saw her floating off the ground.  
  
      "Mia, you're floating!" Sage looked down at his feet. "And we are too!" All of sudden a gust of wind came and sucked everyone up.  
  
      "Everyone, hold on tight!" Mia, White Blaze, and the guys got sucked up into the air and disappeared.  
  
      Mia woke up and got herself off the ground. She looked around and found herself in a forest. "Where am I? Ryo! Sage! Kento! Cye! Rowen! Where are you guys?"  
  
      "Hello there, Mia." Mia turned around and saw Kryos come out from behind a tree. "I'm so glad you could make it."  
  
      "What do you want with me?"  
  
      "Nothing, but my master is another story." He raised his hand and a dozen wolves came out with glowing red eyes. Mia got a scared look on her face and froze. "Your life is going to end before it even begins!"  
  
      He pointed at Mia and the wolves attacked. Mia tried to dodge them, but one of them slashed her stomach with its claw. She put her arm over the wound and put one knee on the ground with a look of pain in her face. "Well, is the little warrior ready to die?" The wolves pounced toward Mia, and she froze in place.  
  
      "AHHHHHH!" All of a sudden, White Blaze jumped in front and picked up Mia.  
  
      "What?"  
  
      "We really don't like it when you mess around with our friends, especially Mia," Ryo said as he and the others came out of the woods in their armor.  
  
      "How did you find me?"  
  
      "We have our ways," Cye said.  
  
      "I think it's time for us to say goodbye. Iron Rock Crusher!" Kryos jumped to avoid the attack, but when he landed, everyone was gone.  
  
      "NO! They got away! I'll get them."  
  
      The guys finally met up with Mia and White Blaze at a nearby tree. "Well, it looks like we're back together again."  
  
      "Hey, Mia, are you all right?"  
  
      "I'm not in the best condition right now." She took away her arm and showed the gashes across her stomach.  
  
      "What happened, Mia?"  
  
      "One of those wolves attacked me before you guys came."  
  
      "Hey, Sage, do you think you can heal her?"  
  
      "Leave it to me, Ryo. Okay, Mia, just lay back a little bit and it will be over soon." Sage took out his sword and Mia leaned back a little. Sage put his sword up to her stomach and it started to glow. In a few seconds, the gashes were gone and Sage put his sword away. "Now, Mia, no direct hits to the stomach for a while and you should be fine." He gave a little funny smile, and Mia smiled back.  
  
      "Now what are we supposed to do? Kryos is after us, and we have no idea where we are," Kento asked.  
  
      "I think the best thing to do would be to keep moving," Rowen answered.  
  
      "So what are we waiting for?" Everyone got up and started to walk.  
  
      "I won't let the girl get away now. Spread out and look for them." Kryos disappeared and the soldiers dispersed.  
  
      "So, where are we going exactly?"  
  
      " I have no idea, Cye." All of a sudden, it started to rain in buckets.  
  
      "Great, now it's starting to rain."  
  
      "At least we have our armor to protect us from the rain, Kento."  
  
      "Speak for yourself, Cye," Mia said, drenched from head to toe. She wrung out her hair and let it go. Ryo took off his helmet and puts it on Mia's head.  
  
      "Here, you need this more."  
  
      "Don't you need it, Ryo?"  
  
      "Not really. I have my armor to protect me from the rain. You hardly have anything."  
  
      "Thanks, Ryo."  
  
      White Blaze stopped and started to sniff the air. Then he curled his back and started to growl.  
  
      "Hey, does anyone else smell that?" Rowen started to sniff the air and so did everyone else.  
  
      "It smells like smoke." Mia turned around and saw smoke and flames coming from behind. "Over there! Look!" Everyone turned around and looked at the forest burning.  
  
      "How can it be raining and there be a fire at the same time?"  
  
      "I don't know, Kento, but we should get out of here," Sage said. Everyone started to run away, with Mia and White Blaze in front. The guys looked behind them to see how the fire was. Mia stopped suddenly and stopped the other guys too. "Mia, why did you stop?"  
  
      Mia pointed forward. "Look." Smoke came from above the treetops and soldiers started to come out from behind.  
  
      "Oh man, this is real bad," Rowen said. One of the soldiers pounced toward Mia, but Rowen stopped him.  
  
      "You guys, get Mia out of here."  
  
      "But Ro…" Ryo says.  
  
      "I'll be fine, you guys."  
  
      "Okay." Everyone started running, except Mia, who stayed and looked at Rowen.  
  
      Why are you guys protecting me like this? I don't get it. "Rowen, come on."  
  
      "Mia! Get out of here!" Rowen screamed. Mia hesitated for a second, turned around and left.  
  
      "Come on, you guys. Let's move it."  
  
      "Wait a minute, where's Mia?" They heard a scream from behind them.  
  
      "Cye and I will go find her." Kento and Cye started running the way they came. As soldiers surrounded Mia, Kento and Cye appeared and protect her.  
  
      "Mia, get out of here now!' Cye screamed.  
  
      "But…"  
  
      "Now, Mia!" Kento screamed. Mia nodded and went toward the others.  
  
      Be careful, you guys. I don't want to lose you.  
  
      "Mia, are you okay?"  
  
      "Hey, I'm fine." A firewall stopped Ryo, Sage, White Blaze, and Mia.  
  
      "This way," Sage said. They followed him, but got trapped by dozens of soldiers. Sage, Ryo, and White Blaze surrounded Mia, trying to protect her.  
  
      "Ryo, take Mia and get out of here."  
  
      "No way, Sage. We gotta stick together."  
  
      "Ryo, we have to do whatever it takes to protect Mia, even if it means giving up our lives. We promised Hiro that, didn't we?"  
  
      "I know. Why don't you go and I'll stay?"  
  
      "I don't think so. You have the Wildfire. You have the best chance against the fire. It will make you stronger and more able to protect Mia."  
  
      "Right. Just be careful, Sage."  
  
      "Don't worry about me, just get Mia out of here."  
  
      "Come on, Mia." Ryo grabbed Mia's wrist and dragged her, but Mia held back.  
  
      "Ryo, we can't leave Sage here. I don't want to lose anyone else!"  
  
      "Come on, Mia!"  
  
      "No! I don't want to leave Sage here! He's gonna get hurt, I don't want him hurt!"  
  
      "Come on, Mia! Let's go!" Ryo pulled Mia even harder and started to run.  
  
      Why are you guys doing this? Mia thought. Ryo still ran, holding her wrist and dragging her along. White Blaze ran behind them. Ryo stopped right as a giant firewall blocked the path. Soldiers surrounded them once again.  
  
      I could fight, but I can't with Mia here. What can I do? As a dozen soldiers came toward Mia and Ryo, Mia screamed and a bright light came from the Spirit Orb and blinded everyone.  
  
      "I can't believe that they got away. This can't be. They will pay!"  
  
      Ryo sat by the entrance of a cave, looking outside. Mia and White Blaze sat more inside the cave by a fire. Don't worry, you guys, I'll come for you guys. I know we promised Hiro we would do anything, but we have to stick in this together. I would go and find you guys right now, but what am I supposed to do with Mia? White Blaze licked Ryo on the cheek. "Huh?"  
  
      "Hey, Ryo." Mia sat on the opposite side of Ryo that White Blaze was on. "I'm really sorry about everything. If you want to, you can go and find the guys. I don't mind."  
  
      "What are you talking about, Mia?"  
  
      "I know you're worried about the guys. And so am I. You should go and find them. I'll stay here."  
  
      "I'm not worried about them. They can take care of themselves. I'd rather stay here anyway."  
  
      Mia looked outside and watched the rainfall. "Ryo, can I ask you something, and you have to be entirely truthful with me."  
  
      "Ask away."  
  
      "Do you know what's really going on lately?"  
  
      "What do you mean?"  
  
      "Well, I mean like that the guys wanted me to get away, and Sage said something about that you guys promised someone who would protect me, and then Kryos said, 'Your life is going to end before it even begins'."  
  
      Should I tell her the truth? I'm not sure if she's ready yet. "Um, if you want to know, I really don't know what's going on either, Mia. It's a mystery to us too." Mia yawned and covered her mouth. "Mia, why don't you go to sleep? You look tired."  
  
      "I'm fine. Are you going to sleep?"  
  
      "I'm not tired. I'm going to stay up and watch out for the guys." Mia took off Ryo's helmet that was still on her head and placed it back on Ryo's head. She yawned again.  
  
      "You'll need this more than me. Goodnight, Ryo." She kissed Ryo on the cheek and got up. Ryo put his hand where Mia kissed him and watched her go toward the fire. She laid down by the fire with her face toward Ryo and went to sleep. Ryo looked at Mia with the fire glowing on her face.  
  
      I really don't want her to get hurt. I wish she wasn't involved in all this, but as along as she is, I'll make sure nothing happens to her. I promise. "White Blaze, go lay down next to Mia and keep her warm." White Blaze got up and laid right behind Mia. Mia put her head on White Blaze, using him like a pillow. White Blaze took one of his paws and put it around Mia, keeping her warm. Ryo smiled and turned his head back outside.  
  
      Mia opened her eyes to see the fire burnt out. She got up and stretched her arms and saw White Blaze at the cave entrance, but saw no Ryo. She got up and went toward White Blaze. "White Blaze, where's Ryo? Did he go looking for the guys?" White Blaze roared and walked outside. Mia followed and saw a bright flash in the air. "Come on, White Blaze, let's go." Mia with White Blaze ran toward into the woods.  
  
      "Why don't you give up, Wildfire? I have your friends already." Ryo stood holding both his swords with the guys tied up hanging from trees in the back.  
  
      "There's no way I'm going to give up, Kryos."  
  
      Mia peeked through the trees and saw the battle going on. "We gotta do something, White Blaze, but what can we do?"  
  
      Kryos saw a sparkle in the woods. "Well now, won't this be fun?"  
  
      "What are you talking about, Kryos?" Ryo asked.  
  
      "You'll see. Dark Ice Strike!" He directed his attack straight for the woods. From out of the blast came Mia riding on White Blaze's back.  
  
      "Mia!" Ryo shouted. Suddenly a vine cam from the ground, wrapped Ryo, and hung him from a tree next to the guys. White Blaze and Mia landed on the ground.  
  
      "Well, girl, it's so nice to see you again."  
  
      "Sorry I can't return the comment."  
  
      "Mia, what are you doing here?"  
  
      "When I saw you were gone, I went to look for you and the others."  
  
      "Mia, get out of here right now," Rowen said.  
  
      "I don't think that will be possible, Strata." The ground started to shake and both Mia and White Blaze jumped up into the air, but the vines grabbed White Blaze and brought him down.  
  
      "White Blaze." Mia saw White Blaze, but turned around and got kicked in the stomach by Persha and went flying to the ground.  
  
      "Oh no, Mia!" Sage screamed. Mia brought herself onto her legs and looked straight at Kryos.  
  
      "It looks like the little warrior is stronger than she looks. Let's see how strong she really is. Dark Ice Strike!" Mia dodged the blast, but Kryos hit her again several times and knocked her into a tree. "So, how about the little warrior comes along with me peacefully, and then we can stop all this fighting?"  
  
      Mia got on her hands and knees. Her clothes were ripped, some off her armor was chipped off, and a few strands of hair were in her face. She lifted up her head and looked at Kryos with anger and vengeance in her eyes.  
  
      "I'll never give into you or your master."  
  
      "Kryos, just leave her alone. You have us already, you don't need her," Cye said.  
  
      "Let her go. She can't do anything to you," Kento commented.  
  
      "That's more than you know, Hardrock." Kryos walked up to Mia who was still trying to recover from the last blow. He took his sword and placed it right up to Mia's neck. "So, what should we do with the little warrior? I could kill her now, or I could let Master Persha kill her. But I think I'd rather have some more fun." He kicked her again in the stomach and ran her into a tree. She screamed out in pain and fell to the ground, not moving.  
  
      "Mia, please, wake up!" Tears started to form in his eyes.  
  
      "She can't hear you, Wildfire. Now it's your time to end up like the little warrior over there." All of a sudden, the vines started to constrict White Blaze and each Ronin Warrior one at a time. They all screamed out in pain as they felt their bodies being crushed. Mia slightly opened her eyes and saw what Kryos was doing to her friends.  
  
      "No." She slowly got back on her hands and knees. Tears fell from her face to the ground. "I won't let my friends be hurt or killed because of me. I won't, they're too important to me." The symbol of love appeared on her forehead. "I won't let anyone hurt my friends!"  
  
      Kryos turns around and looked at Mia who was glowing in a bright golden color. Her hair floated off the ground and she lifted up her head. Mia said in a very angry voice, "I tolerated you hurting me, but when it comes to my friends, I won't let anyone get away with hurting them. Kryos, you've tortured and hurt my friends too many times, and now it's time that you pay!"  
  
      The bright light surrounding Mia got brighter and a beam shot up to the sky. Everyone looked up to the sky and saw the outline of a figure with a long staff. "No one messes with my friends!" The figure brought down its staff and a glowing beam of light came straight towards Kryos and hit him straight on.  
  
      "No! This can't be! I've failed you, Master Persha!" He disappeared for the last time. The light destroyed the vines around the Ronin Warriors and White Blaze, but the light covered everything.  
  
      Each of the guys started to wake up and found themselves in Mia's front yard in their normal clothes. "Hey, you guys, what happened?"  
  
      "I have no idea, Kento," Sage said.  
  
      "Wait a minute, where's Mia?"  
  
      "I don't know."  
  
      White Blaze roared, coming out of the woods with Mia hanging on his back. "Mia." Ryo took Mia off of White Blaze's back and carried her. Her hair touched the ground and looked limp. "It looks like Mia is out cold."  
  
      "Do you think that figure we saw was really Mia?"  
  
      "It looks like it was her. No wonder they wanted to get rid of her, that power was tremendous."  
  
      "I know. Now we really have to protect her because Persha knows just how powerful she is." Ryo carried her inside and everyone else followed. 


	10. Chapter 9

"A New Discovered Power"  
  
Part Nine  
  
Â  Â  Â  Mia walked down the street with her purse hanging off her shoulder. A figure followed her close by. She turned her head and the figure disappeared. She continued to walk down the street and the figure reappeared. Mia stopped again and looked back, but the figure disappeared around the corner. Mia started to walk again and suddenly stopped. "Kento, you can come out." She turned around and Kento came out of hiding.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Um, hi, Mia. Isn't it a lovely day for a walk?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What were you doing following me?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I wasn't following you. I was just taking a walk."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We'll see about that." She grabbed Kento's ear and dragged him to the jeep.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Persha stood in a valley by himself. He was in the middle of five pillars in the shape of a pentagon, which were glowing. "Well, it looks like Kryos couldn't handle the responsibility of destroying the girl. That doesn't matter now. I'll destroy her and this world my own way."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Okay Yuli, do you have any threes?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Go fish, Ryo."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo picked up a card and put it in his hand. Everyone sat around the diningroom table playing cards. "Okay, Sage, it's your turn." Everyone heard the door open and slam close.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey, Mia's back."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Mia threw Kento into the table. "Whoa, Mia. What was that for?" Rowen asked. Mia stoods at the end of the table.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I want to know what's going on right now!" she said angrily.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We're only playing go fish, Mia."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I don't want any of that smart talk from you, Sage! Yuli, can you leave the guys and me alone for a while?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Sure, Mia. Come on, White Blaze." White Blaze and Yuli went out of the room.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "All right, I want some answers right now! Why are you guys following me?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What are you talking about?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "You know exactly what I'm talking about, Cye! You sent Kento out to follow me! I really don't like being watched like a little kid!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We're sorry, Mia, but it's the only way we could watch you," Ryo said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Then you could have at least come along with me!" She slammed her hand on the table. Ryo stood up at the opposite end of the table and slammed his hand on the table.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We thought this was the best way. At least we let you have some space. This is the only way we can protect you from being killed!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I can take care of myself, Ryo! I don't need to be treated like a baby. You saw how I was when I was fighting Kryos. I don't need to be watched twenty-four-seven!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Sorry if we're trying to save your life!" They stared at each other in silence.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo! Come outside quick! Something strange is happening!" Everyone rushed outside and saw the sky start to turn black.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It must be Persha."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go find out what he's up to." Mia pulled in front of them with the jeep.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Come on, then." Everyone got into the jeep except Ryo and Yuli.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'll go on White Blaze." He and Yuli hopped on and started running. Mia followed him in the jeep.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I've never seen Mia and Ryo like this before. They never fight," Kento whispered to Rowen.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I know. It's really scary. I wonder what's going to happen."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo, what happened between you and Mia? I heard you guys screaming at each other."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia and I just had a little fight, Yuli, that's all."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Persha looked down on everything high upon a mountain. "Well, it looks like the Ronin Warriors and the girl are coming to ruin my plans. I can tell that they won't have any luck, though. They're way over their heads."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo and Yuli waited as Mia stopped the jeep. "Took you guys long enough to get here."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "At least we're here." They looked over the side of the cliff and saw five giant pillars in a pentagon shape.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "It looks like Persha is ready to make his last move."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That means that we have to make our last move."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Right. Yuli, Mia, stay here."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Right, Sage."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Armor of Wildfire, Strata, Halo, Torrent, Hardrock!" All the guys jumped off the cliff and landed on the ground below.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey, you guys, there's nothing here."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "This doesn't seem right. Where's Persha?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Right behind you, Halo." They all turned around and see Persha in his brown armor. "It's so nice to finally meet you in person, Ronin Warriors. I am Lord Persha, but you probably knew that already. Now, you can just give me the girl, or we can do a little fighting. Your decision."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "There's no way you're getting Mia, so we'll settle for fighting."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Persha took out his sickle (like what the grim reaper holds). "Very well then, Wildfire. Let's get started. Dark Destruction!" They started to fight and none of the guys could lay a hand on Persha, but Persha easily struck each of the guys down.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia, they're getting creamed. We gotta do something. Why don't you do something, Mia?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  Mia looked at the guys fighting. "I wish I could, Yuli, but I don't know what to do."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well then, I'll do something." Yuli got up and went toward the cliff. Mia caught him, but slid on the edge and fell off.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Why don't you just tell me where the girl is, so we can end this once and for all?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "There's no way we're telling you, Persha."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "AH!" Mia grabbed onto a rock on the cliff and pulled herself up.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "So, you've been hiding the girl from me all this time. Now it's time to see the death of your friend." Persha jumped into the air and went toward Mia.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Mia! Watch out!" Ryo screamed. Mia turned her head and saw Persha heading towards her.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Dark Destruction!" Mia closed her eyes, but Ryo blocked the attack before it hit Mia and brought her back to the top.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Ryo! Mia!" Cye screamed.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We're in trouble now, you guys," Rowen commented.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, that was easy enough. Now what are you going to do, Ronins?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo and Mia knelt in front of each other at the top of the hill. "Mia, are you all right?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'm fine, Ryo. Thanks." Ryo crunched and fell into Mia's arms. She started to cry as she saw her friend in pain. "I'm so sorry, Ryo. You sacrificed your life to save me, even after I was such a jerk to you." Ryo looked up into Mia's eyes.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Don't worry about it, Mia. I'll make sure nothing happens to you." He fell into her arms and was knocked out.  
  
Â  Â  Â  All of a sudden, Mia's eyes got big as she remembered the day of the warrior festival. 'Don't worry about it, Mia. I'll make sure nothing happens to you.'  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Talpa."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What are you talking about, Mia?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Yuli, I remember everything now. I remember Talpa, and the Dark Warlords, and the armor of Inferno, and the Ancient, and Kayura, and the Jewel of Life, and I remember being kidnapped and the spirit orb and being made to fight against you guys."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That's great, Mia, but what are we supposed to do now? Without Ryo, we're in trouble."  
  
Â  Â  Â  Mia looked at Ryo and laid him down. She got up, wiped her tears away, and held the spirit orb in her hand, staring at it. "I'm going to teach Persha a lesson about hurting and messing around with my friends." Love. "Armor of the Spirits!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  The spirit orb floated into the air and began to glow. A bright light flashed and Mia appeared in a dull gray armor. The spirit orb formed a long staff with the outline of a circle at one end, with the spirit orb floating in the middle. She grabbed the staff and a flood of silver light surrounded her. When it disappeared, Mia was left in a bright silver armor.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Each of the guys were tied to the ground with chains, struggling to get out. "So, what are you going to do now, Ronin Warriors?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We're going to destroy you, Persha."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I don't think that's possible, Hardrock. Now, who should I destroy first?" He looked at all the guys. "I choose you, Hardrock, since you spoke up to me. Get ready for the end." He charged toward Kento with his sickle in hand. Kento froze in surprise, and just as the sickle was about to strike, something came flying through the air and knocked it out of his hand. "What was that?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I'm just glad that thing came along." Cye looked toward the tallest tower, the one at the top point. "Hey! Look over there, you guys!" Everyone looked and sees a strange person in silver armor holding a long silver staff.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "That must be the person who saved me."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "But who is it?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Could it be?" Persha mumbled to himself.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey, you guys!" Yuli ran down the cliff on White Blaze carrying Ryo. "It's Mia! That person is Mia!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "What!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No! The girl found her armor."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I am Mia of the Heavens, guardian of the heavens and my world. I will fight and protect my world, and my friends at any cost and I won't let anyone hurt them."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Those are big words for such a little girl." Persha turned around and went toward Sage. Sage closed his eyes and heared a clash. He opened his eyes to see Mia standing in front of him, holding back Persha.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Wow, that was fast."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Afraid to fight a little girl, Persha?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Not at all. It would be my pleasure to fight against you." Mia and Persha started to fight. They blocked each other on every hit, but as they began to fight more, Mia began to glow a brighter silver.  
  
Â  Â  Â  They stopped for a minute and Persha gave a little smirk. "Get ready to die, girl!" The pillars started to glow and five beams of light came straight toward Mia. It hit Mia, but a light broke through the beams and shattered them. Persha and the guys stared in amazement as they saw Mia come out of the attack without one scratch. "It can't be! She can't be that powerful!"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Get ready to say goodbye, Persha." Mia began to glow brightly and jumped into the air. "Mortal Spirit Blaze!" She pointed her staff at the ground as the spirit orb began to glow. A beam of light came out and went toward the ground. As it hit, the beam broke up into several beams surrounding everything. It freed the guys and destroyed each of the pillars.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "No! I didn't know she was this powerful! She will pay for this." Persha suddenly disappeared in a flash of light.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Mia came down to the ground with her eyes closed and landed safely. Ryo, still on White Blaze, opened his eyes and looked at Mia. She turned around and Ryo saw that now she had very pale, glass-like blue eyes and silver hair. "Mia," he mumbled, and closed his eyes.  
  
Â  Â  Â  Ryo opens his eyes and sat up. He saw that he was in his bedroom. He looked next to him and saw someone with its head on his bed. "Mia?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Looks different, doesn't she?" Sage said. Ryo looked at the door and saw everyone there.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "She sure does." He took some of Mia's hair hanging over her face and put it back in place.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "You should have seen her, Ryo. She was amazing. I saw her transform and everything."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Why did she transform, Yuli?"  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Well, she saw that you guys were in trouble and all of a sudden, she got her memory back and transformed."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "We sure are lucky, then. She was amazing out there, fighting Persha by herself," Rowen commented.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "And she totally destroyed him, too. Her power was amazing. You should have seen her, Ryo," Kento said.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I really wish I could have."  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Hey, Ryo, we're going out for a while. Wanna come?" Sage asked.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "Sure." He got up and put on his shirt, making sure not to disturb Mia. He started walking out the door when he realized he forgot his wallet. "I'll meet you guys outside."  
  
Â  Â  Â  They continued as Ryo went back into his room and got his wallet. He turns around and saw Mia sleeping. He went over, gently picked her up, and put her into his bed, covering her up. He kissed her lightly on the forehead and whispered, "I love you, Mia." He started walking toward the door.  
  
Â  Â  Â  "I love you too, Ryo." Ryo turned around and saw Mia turn her head toward the wall.  
  
Â  Â  Â  I must have been hearing things. He went out the door.   
  
Â  Â  Â  So, it looks like this part of the story is finished. Send me any comments. Stay tuned for the next part. 


End file.
